Pie-challenged cooks should take heed of the British solution. There are no crust emergencies and no worry over fillings. Even the name sounds delicious: the crumble.

This one is a child of World War II in the Isles, when the need for fast comfort food was at an all-time high. It offers a fresh, pie-fruity taste without the hassles of cantankerous crust dough. The crumble crust, in its simplicity, is always perfect.

The original crumble was lard, flour, oats and fruit. Post-war additions were nuts, coconut and butter.

The crumble’s close cousin in America is the fruit cobbler, though this specifies a more cake-like topping. Its other American relative is the fruit crisp, and the two names are interchangeable.

Americans crave a crumble pie. This is a traditional fruit pie with a bottom dough crust and a crumble instead of a crust top.

British crumbles always are crafted from fresh fruits –– no canned pie filling allowed. They simply are baked fruit with a crunchy, sweet topping; no big deal but always delicious.